Draft Monument Management Plan Released
For Public Review and Comment

Deputy Secretary of the Interior Lynn Scarlett
announced the release of the Draft Management Plan for the Papahānaumokuākea
Marine National Monument on April 22, 2008 in Honolulu, Hawaii. Hi-Res

HONOLULU, HI –In the spirit of Earth
Day, Hawai‘i Governor Linda Lingle, Deputy Secretary of the Interior
Lynn Scarlett, and Undersecretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere and
NOAA Administrator Vice Admiral Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Jr., U.S. Navy
(Ret.), gathered at historic Washington Place today to announce the availability
of the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument Draft Management
Plan and associated Environmental Assessment for public review and comment. Once
completed, the documents will guide the future management of this unique and
fragile part of Hawai‘i during the next 15 years.

“It is fitting to release the draft management plan for the nation’s
largest conservation area on Earth Day,” said Governor Lingle, as she
addressed many of the people involved in developing the management plan. “This
vast area has a great deal of significance, not only to those concerned with
protecting our environment, but to the Native Hawaiians who share such a strong
cultural tie to the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands.”

The three government agencies responsible for managing the Monument – the
State of Hawai‘i, U.S. Department of the Interior and U.S. Department
of Commerce – in accordance with the Presidential Proclamation that established
the Monument, developed this comprehensive plan to coordinate activities while
also meeting agency requirements. The plan is organized into six priority
management needs that address a range of issues from understanding and interpreting
resources to managing human uses. Under these broad management needs,
22 action plans describe the specific activities that will be conducted, all
of which will be carried out within the larger vision of protecting the health,
diversity and resources of the monument.

“As we near the 100th anniversary of the creation of the Hawaiian Islands
National Wildlife Refuge, and actually celebrate the 20th anniversary of Midway
Atoll National Wildlife Refuge on this very day, we reaffirm the traditions
of protecting this very special region,” said Deputy Secretary Scarlett. “From
the early Polynesians who first visited these islands to today’s visitors
to Midway Atoll, we share a sense of wonder over the remarkable wildlife that
call Papahānaumokuākea home. Through this management plan,
we hope to continue protecting and restoring their habitats so that future
generations may also view them with awe.”

“The draft plan truly embodies the spirit of cooperative conservation," said
Vice Adm. Lautenbacher. . “The document reflects the best thinking
of the thousands of people who have raised their voices on behalf of the Monument.
We look forward to working with the community and our fellow Monument co-trustees
to ensure the protection of this special and globally significant place that
is Papahanaumokuakea."

The four-volume, 1,200 page draft plan is available at Hawai‘i public
libraries and on the monument website at http://www.papahanaumokuakea.gov. A
limited number of copies on compact disk or in printed form are available by
calling the Fish and Wildlife Service in Honolulu at (808) 792-9530. The
75-day federal public comment period on these documents officially begins on
April 23 and ends July 8. Comments submitted between June 8 and July
8 will also be officially addressed by the State of Hawai‘i, though all
comments will be reviewed and considered by the three managing agencies in
developing a final plan.

Comments on the documents may be submitted in writing to the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service, Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, Box
50167, Honolulu, Hawai‘i 96850 or by e-mailing them to PMNM_MMP_Comments@fws.gov.

Comments also will be accepted orally during a series of public meetings to
be held statewide in June. The nine meetings – three on O‘ahu,
and one each on Kaua‘i, Lāna‘i, Maui, Moloka‘i and in
West Hawai‘i and East Hawai‘i – will offer the public
an opportunity to ask questions and seek clarification regarding the plan as
well as provide formal comments.

In addition, a public meeting will be held in Washington, D.C. on June 11
at the Auditorium in the Main Department of the Interior Building.

Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument is managed jointly by
three co-trustees — the Department of Commerce, Department of the Interior
and the State of Hawai‘i — and represents a cooperative conservation
approach to protecting the entire ecosystem. The monument area includes the
Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Coral Reef Ecosystem Reserve, the Midway Atoll
National Wildlife Refuge/Battle of Midway National Memorial, the Hawaiian Islands
National Wildlife Refuge, the Hawai‘i State Seabird Sanctuary at Kure
Atoll, and Northwestern Hawaiian Islands State Marine Refuge.